NHS consults public on South East children's cancer centre location

The NHS is consulting the public on where children's cancer services for south London and the South East should be located.

Treatment for patients aged 15 and under is currently provided by The Royal Marsden Hospital at Sutton and St George's Hospital in Tooting.

It has been proposed that future care is provided at St George's or Evelina London Children's Hospital in Lambeth.

The service currently treats about 1,400 children.

It treats patients from south London, Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, Kent and Medway and most of Surrey.

In 2021, new service rules set out that very specialist cancer treatment services for children must be on the same site as a level three children's intensive care unit, but The Royal Marsden does not have one.

Dr Chris Streather, medical director for NHS England, said: "The Royal Marsden has an impressive track record of delivering high quality care for children but the pace of innovation in children's cancer treatment means that, to be fit for the future, the centre must move to be with intensive care."

He added the new centre would be ready to offer "innovative life saving new treatments that wouldn't be possible under the current arrangements".

Dr Streather wants to get feedback from children, families and staff throughout the 12-week consultation.

Ashley Ball-Gamble, chief executive of the charity Children's Cancer and Leukemia Group, said: "Whichever location is chosen, the changes proposed will provide all services that a principal treatment centre must have on site in one location, resulting in more seamless care for children and a high quality experience for their families."

The proposed changes only affect very specialist cancer services that are already provided in London. Children who receive other types of cancer treatment in regional centres like Brighton will continue to do so in the future.

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